Behind the Perfectly Imperfect New ‘She Takes on the World’ Brand We’re Creating

First, I want to thank you for all your comments, emails, and shares of this reflection series I’ve been writing as I look back on the last few years of our growth and work on the next evolution of SheTakesOnTheWorld.com. I’m fired up about all the ways we’re going to be serving you moving forward.

If you haven’t stopped in to check out the first three parts of the series yet, you can find:

Part 2 (where I discuss the miracles that happen when you follow your intuition — and why I moved to L.A. despite everyone telling me not to!) here

And Part 3 (where I got raw about why I had to blow my own heart apart) here

Each story in this series gives a peek into where I’ve been, and where I’m going, along with my future plans for She Takes on the World. It’s been such a fun and fascinating journey for me and I hope sharing my experiences and lessons learned will serve you in some way.
Now I actually want to wind back the clock a couple decades.

When I was a kid, my parents got into the habit of videotaping our “candid moments” — blowing out the candles at birthday parties, swimming in the pool, playing with our toys, etc.

Not long ago I was at home watching these old clips on the couch with my mom and dad… and I saw something that stopped me in my tracks.

As the video faded in, there I was, at 8 years old, sitting at the piano. I was practicing a piece, sometimes stumbling, sometimes hitting the right notes.

My mom began walking towards Little Natalie, and the closer she got, the clearer the face of Little Natalie becomes; so intense and focused she looked about ready to explode.

Her furrowed brow and frown made it clear: Little Natalie clearly didn’t want to talk, or be bothered in any way. She glared at the camera, and her body was glued to that stool and that piano, determined to “get it right” no matter how long she had to sit there.

I wanted to jump through the screen and hug my little self. I wanted to tell her “It’s okay! You don’t need to keep practicing this song! Don’t be so hard on yourself when you mess up. Go play!”

I sat back to take stock of how far I’ve come and how much more relaxed I am now even though there’s an intensity to my personality. I’m so much lighter now, but it’s been a long road here.

…And, if I can be really honest about something else?

Nothing has brought that perfectionist monster out of me like the process of moving, letting go of endless old patterns and even a decade-long relationship, and planning the rebrand of She Takes on the World.

From trying to find “just the right” place to live, to listing all the reasons why my former partner and I were or weren’t “perfect” together, to sweating over the fact my amazing photographer wasn’t giving me the direction I thought I needed for the perfect shot.

Ultimately, perfectionism is one of the greatest fears we can carry. We don’t always recognize it that way — but it’s true.

But for a long time, I didn’t see anything wrong with it. I’ll tell you why:

One of the biggest problems with perfectionism? How we can be praised for it all our lives.

As a student, my straight-A’s were applauded.

As an entrepreneur, my obsession with every little detail of my brand and business gained me respect.

As a CEO, my perfectionism has communicated to my team, in no uncertain terms, how high my standards are.

And yet, it is this beast that’s caused heartache, stress, worry, and fear of not being “good enough”.

Perfectionism has kept me from sharing stories, ideas, and concepts with you that could have been valuable — because I was afraid you’d judge me, or wonder why everything wasn’t “just so”.

And battling our own inner demons is such a frustrating process, isn’t it?

It has taught me one thing, though:

Choosing “done” over “perfect” is the absolute best way to share my ideas with the world in a way that’s authentic, raw, and infinitely more valuable.

It also makes me feel infinitely more connected to you.

It’s a conscious choice that I make over and over, every day (and has caused more than a few total freakouts) — and the results have been… amazing.

This desire be more honest, open, and real for you — instead of “perfect” — has driven every decision I’ve made for the evolution of the She Takes on the World brand that we’re immersed in building too.

What does this mean? It means no more perfect hair and makeup in a perfectly lit production studio (shout out to my production team though, they’re amazing!). That means no more scripted episodes.

It means no more fear, no more holding back, and no more barriers between what I’m doing, and the action steps I want you to take.

The new She Takes on the World is going to take you behind-the-scenes of my business and life in a way you’ve never seen.

I’ll show you the routines and rituals that are at the foundation of my success, as well as what I’m working on implementing at the time and showing you the beautiful mess that is entrepreneurship. I want you along for the ride.

Excited about where we’re heading? It would mean the world to me if you let me know you’re vibing with this new direction in a comment below.

And every week, I’ll be challenging you — and myself! — to take perfectly imperfect action of some kind.

The new She Takes On the World is coming this summer, but some brand new “Dear Natalie” videos are just on the horizon, so keep your eyes peeled. “Dear Natalie” is a series answering the questions you write me with while we work on creating the new She Takes on the World TV. Want to email me? dearnatalie@shetakesontheworld.com

We’ll be entering this next phase hand in hand — and I hope you’re as excited as I am.

Now, of course, I have a question for you to contemplate, journal about, or just chew over in the coming days and weeks: What underlying pattern, belief, or block is holding you back right now? And what are you committed to doing to step forward despite it?

This isn’t about switching paths immediately. It’s about acknowledging our own obstacles, and finding ways to step forward anyway.

That’s why I invite you to walk forward with me.

Through whatever transition you might be going through now.
Through whatever shifts your soul is whispering to you to make, despite what everyone says.
Through whatever you need to do to take on the world — in your business, in your life, and everywhere in between.

36 thoughts on “Behind the Perfectly Imperfect New ‘She Takes on the World’ Brand We’re Creating”

I love this Nat! I have read every word of your series, and connect with this more than anything you have ever done. Entrepreneurship has been a confusing road for me. To read realness from you made my shoulders relax, and nod my head as I read your words. Deep breath-for you, me and all the other women creating from their heart space. With you every step of the way, always.

That inner fear of not being ‘good enough’ has been something that’s come up time and time again for me over the years but has come out even more in the past 6 months or so. I’ve been working hard to try and push through it and to see you on the other side is so inspiring, Natalie. Thank you so much for sharing your enoughness and your rawness with us. I can’t WAIT to see all the changes coming

Thank you Rachel. <3 It helped me to take inventory of all the ways I let this impact my life, and I really felt into how I would show up differently if I let it go. Instead of pushing through I just sat with it for awhile to become really aware of the patterns. Does that make sense? Once I had that awareness, then I made some decisions around what I wanted to do and how I wanted to feel instead.

YESSSS. Thank you for sharing this Natalie. You are one of the most (or perhaps THE MOST) committed to alignment peeps I’ve had the pleasure to know. I’m so pumped for the rebrand! Personally I’m being held back by seeing opportunity everywhere and yet not taking action on all the things. I believe we call that ‘overwhelm.’

I’ve always loved your work Natalie and yet now as you step into the ‘good enough’ real you of messy entrepreneurship my cheerleading has notched up! Because as a newbie on this entrepreneur journey I have been searching for the ‘real’, the authentic, the ones who share the shadow as well as the blazing glory. Because that is who and how I am experiencing the birth and early growth of Your Bright Horizons and our offerings to the Hummingbirds of our wonderfully glorious complicatedly simple world. I look forward to continuing to stroll along in your wake … learning evolving crying laughing and celebrating our compassioning, creating and couraging together!

Can totally relate. Super exicted to go on this new journey with you. May I be just as brave by making the necessary changes needed by me to take my life and business to the next level, and by allowing others to see my vulnerable side.

Oh my goodness this so resonates with me right now. I’ve been living in so much fear of not making a mistake in my business. Of getting it “perfect” when I just need to get SOMETHING done. Thanks for your vulnerability!

Natalie!! I am so excited about your perfectly imperfect journey!! I am a recovering perfectionist. And I started redirecting that energy when my husband’s children told him one day that “they didn’t have to clean up because I was the maid”. I was so angry at those words…not just because it was rude and disrespectful for them to say that but because my obsessive tendencies made me behave that way. Over the ten years since that time I am still finding ways that I have to let that stuff go. I love your books and planner…I literally would not be able to function without them. I am a chiropractor and I run my entire clinic by myself (perfectionism strikes again) but I just hired an assistant to help me do things and I am giving her the freedom to do the tasks the way she sees fit. Thank you for your expertise and I am excited to see your unscripted, raw material…I really feel that this is going to speak to the soul of so many women and you are so brave to lead this revolution of women business owners!

I’m so excited for the new direction she takes on the world and appreciative of everything you’ve done so far Natalie! I think perfectionism as well as feeling worthy of things is what underpins most of the struggles I face is I’ve been creating my big dream of starting my own business. Looking forward to going on this journey with you!

Kudos to you for facing your fears and being brave enough to share them. I can definitely relate to making every attempt to shatter perfectionism – you articulated it perfectly. It’s not typically seen as a weakness because we are so often praised for it. Thanks for the insight 🙂

Definitely looking forward to it. This resonates for me as well since I tend to be a perfectionist in many ways. I’m also trying to find that balance and what is “good enough.” I applaud you and am proud of you for stepping out of your comfort zone and into a space that is more vulnerable and “real”…one that will definitely serve, and one that I am looking forward to witnessing. So glad to be working with you in CC and to have been witness to your growth for the last few years. xox

Natalie, I applaud the journey you’ve taken and thank you for taking us along for the ride too! I’m excited to see this new venture for you as you step into new territory. I’ve been following you for 4 years now, in fact my spiritual journey started with you and Danielle LaPorte, opening my eyes to new ways of thinking and doing life and business.
Releasing the idea of perfection and just being real is so inspiring. I look forward to the new seasons of She Takes On The World!

Looking behind the scenes will be so helpful. As a perfectionist, I am also trying to let go of a little of that burden on my shoulders of needing every little word and image to be just so. I am all for the glorious, natural photos I am seeing of you after this new shoot. My biggest challenge is not getting bored too soon and having that urge to create something new even though the ones in place are working well.

YAAASSSSSSSsssss. So much this 200% right now. This is SUCH an important shift in the world of success and work, to actually generate strength and ease around self-defining “success”, and to foster the better parts of our nature within a space that’s been WAY to heavily influenced by a race for the bottom (line). Thank you. See you there. 😉

Thanks for being so open Natalie! I sometimes feel alone when running my business & used to think everyone else had it together from day dot.

Business is complex, requires out of the box thinking, staying ahead of the times, and you feel things must be perfect otherwise you lose opportunities plus the ownership of it all falls on you personally which is daunting… so your articles & openness is of great help, thank you

Natalie, I’ve read every single one of those email series and I love how much more approachable you are to me now. Just for being here writing you is a huge step that I felt driven to take because of those emails. I’ve always wanted to write you because I admire your strenght and focus, but I felt like there was a barrier between us (that I created anyway). I love your new approach and I’m wishing you all the joy and success on this process of rebranding STOTW. I’m so excited for those new videos and I can’t wait to watch them all. Best of luck dear.

Natalie, your raw exposure of who you are IS perfect! In the imperfect world we live in, it is enlightening to know that those of us who are perfectionists can give ourselves permission to be who we are. No one is perfect, however striving for the best we can be is a worthy goal. I have come such a long way in celebrating me (age and lots of difficult life-altering experiences played a big part in my transformation). I have more work to do, but as you say, it’s ok to choose “done” over “perfect”. I continue to learn more about who I am as I navigate the world of entrepreneurship. Thanks for helping me along that road.

This makes me so happy. Just last night I was talking with my HS Senior about being kind to herself. She obsessively checks her grades and hates dropping even one percentage point – A’s aren’t good enough. I’ve never pushed her to get straight A’s, but I guess she picks up on how I stall my own life and fear failing. This really hits to the heart of the matter. I’m looking forward to learning from you in a brand new way.

Hi Natalie….. I love that you are going to show yourself in this way sometimes looking at someone so much more polished can highlight your own imperfection and the distance seems too great to achieve. Your advice is awesome and i do love all your videos. The high standards and lifestyle you lead are also an incentive so its a double edged sword. I suggested you do vlogs on your daily life…. to include behind the scenes struggles and not so perfect moments which happen a lot in my life lol . As always it is about finding balance and being human 🙂 Excited for you karen x

I have had the words “imperfectly perfect” rolling through my mind for several weeks now, and I think there is good reason to say that I’m definitely being guided. I’ve been through a lot (of some similar circumstances in fact) over the past few years of my growth (on a personal and business level, though I’m still working at gaining more traction in the biz)… I’ve grown tired of hearing all of the same typical biz-guru-types of ‘guidance’ circulating out there, and wasn’t liking who I was or how I was handling things. I feel I’ve grown so much, and am finally living into my authentic self more fully. I’ve been enjoying your authenticity, and am more inspired by your work then ever (though I believe I only found you about 3 years ago or so). In gratitude for your openness, and sending peaceful vibes your way. Looking forward to learning more about this new take on your business. Cheers and continued success to you! Thanks for sharing your amazing and intriguing story in it’s full glory!

This is incredibly exciting! I can literally feel your energy bouncing off the screen lol. I love the direction you are heading in, and as I too am coming to a place of choosing imperfect action over my habitual perfectionism (aka, being stagnant), it’s great to know I’m in good company. You, and this series, are an absolute inspiration. Keep going, and keep on being you! I will be tuned in 🙂

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